\u201cManufactured housing is widely considered an important contributor to the unsubsidized affordable housing stock,\u201d according to the report.<\/p>\n
But many residents say that affordability is undermined by steep lot fee increases, as private equity firms buy<\/a> these communities. That tension inspired the formation of the Coalition of Manufactured Home Communities of Pennsylvania, which has pushed back against rising lot fees.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are homeowners in all respects, and the only thing that we\u2019re paying for is the postage stamp piece of land that our home sits on,\u201d Bob Besecker, who founded the coalition, told Spotlight PA.<\/p>\n A bill<\/a> awaiting consideration in the state Senate would limit lot rent increases by tying hikes to the Consumer Price Index while allowing exceptions for \u201cextraordinary increases in operating expenses.\u201d It would also require owners to disclose and justify increases in rents and fees, and allow residents and associations to meet on-site without limiting the time or number of attendees, among other things.<\/p>\n The legislation isn\u2019t about limiting an owner\u2019s ability to make money, said state Rep. Liz Hanbidge (D., Montgomery), the bill\u2019s prime sponsor. Instead, it aims to increase transparency and ensure fair lot fee increases.<\/p>\n Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro has said he\u2019d sign the measure<\/a>, even calling on lawmakers to pass the proposal while delivering his last budget address.<\/p>\n \u201cOwning your own home is the American dream, but in recent years, we\u2019ve seen greedy out-of-state corporations buy up our communities, increase costs to unaffordable levels, and take advantage of Pennsylvanians, especially our seniors,\u201d Shapiro said in March while visiting a mobile home community in Berks County.<\/p>\n The legislation passed the state House 144-59 in June 2025 and has sat in a state Senate committee since. With the two-year session winding down, there\u2019s no guarantee it will cross the finish line before the process has to start over again.<\/p>\n While state Senate Democrats have voiced their support for the legislation, Republicans who control the chamber haven\u2019t committed to calling it up for a vote.<\/p>\n Community owners and other industry officials have pushed back against the legislation, arguing it caps revenue without cutting expenses necessary to operate these properties.<\/p>\n \u201cThey keep talking about these greedy community owners,\u201d Mary Gaiski, executive vice president of the Pennsylvania Manufactured Housing Association, told Spotlight PA.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s not greedy to keep up with rising costs, she added.<\/p>\n Landowners must make upgrades to these properties, and the cost of maintaining things like utility infrastructure and roads has gone up, Gaiski said. If they can\u2019t make a profit, cutting costs or closing altogether are their options.<\/p>\n \u201cWhenever you control the income and not the cost that they have to operate under, you\u2019re setting them up for failure,\u201d she said. \u201cAre there a few bad apples or actors out there, whatever you want to call them? I\u2019m sure there is because every business has that.\u201d<\/p>\n While the terms mobile homes and manufactured homes are often used interchangeably, the latter refers to dwellings built according to standards established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 1976. The shift came after more people started living in these structures permanently. Ultimately, the difference comes down to when the home was built.<\/p>\n Most people who live in mobile home communities have been there for decades and are happy with their housing, according to a 2009 study<\/a> supported by the General Assembly\u2019s Center for Rural Pennsylvania. These residents tend to be older, with many being retired married couples or widowed individuals living on a small pension.<\/p>\n Under the proposal, lot rent increases in these communities would be based on the average Consumer Price Index \u2014 which measures the average change over time in prices of everyday goods and services \u2014 for the most recent year. The bill allows for increases of no less than 2% and no more than 4%, but makes exceptions for \u201cextraordinary increases in operating expenses\u201d to help landowners \u201cget a fair return on their investment,\u201d per the legislation.<\/p>\n Nathan Jameson, founder and managing partner of private equity firm Arx Capital, said that the costs of operating mobile home parks don\u2019t move with the Consumer Price Index.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you look at what CPI is made up of, it\u2019s made up of a basket of goods, like how much did your jeans cost, and how much are eggs,\u201d he told Spotlight PA. \u201cWhereas what we experience as landlords and operators in these mobile home parks is: What is fuel? What is insurance? What are property taxes? And those are increases that are on an annual basis.\u201d<\/p>\n Additionally, legacy owners \u2014 people who\u2019ve had a property for years or maybe inherited land \u2014 acquired it at a much lower price and \u201cdid what they thought was the right thing by not increasing rents with inflation,\u201d Jameson said.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a result, and because they relied on it for their income solely, they didn\u2019t have the income to invest in the property \u2014 to improve roads when they fail, to fix utilities when they don\u2019t work, to remove a dangerous, vacant home, or bring a home in on a vacant spot,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n In turn, those properties \u201cfall into disrepair,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re in the job of improving them and making sure they can hopefully be housing for far beyond my lifetime,\u201d Jameson said.<\/p>\n Arx owns mobile home communities in Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The firm used to own Red Maple Acres in Lehigh County and faced criticism from residents over rate hikes.<\/p>\n Peggy Hoffman\u2019s lot rent there has nearly doubled in the past few years, and now costs almost $900 per month. She\u2019s in her 60s and raising her granddaughter alone, worrying that an unexpected bill would set her back even more. Hoffman told Spotlight PA these higher fees have also meant putting off things for herself like new dentures and hearing aids.<\/p>\n She and her neighbors don\u2019t want a handout, she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we want is reasonable rent,\u201d Hoffman said.<\/p>\n Jameson defended how his firm handled Red Maple Acres. The other bidder, he said, planned to tell everyone to leave and build industrial and retail space.<\/p>\n \u201cThat would\u2019ve been 272 homes that are pretty affordable gone from the Lehigh Valley market that desperately needs it,\u201d Jameson said.<\/p>\n He added that lot fees should reflect the market, noting that Arx considers a county\u2019s median income and thinks about someone making 65%, among other things, to decide what\u2019s affordable. Ideally, they get to that rate over time, but Jameson said the \u201crent control, sabre-rattling\u201d is \u201cforcing landlords and fiduciaries to move faster than they otherwise would.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Gov.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/MjAyNi8wOS8wMW5iLWFxNjQteTUwYi13MWRxLmpwZWc=.jpeg\" "\\"Gov.")
Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro visited a manufactured housing community in March 2026 in Berks County to meet with residents.
\n(Commonwealth Media Services)<\/p>\n